I killed my fourth one today. The noises that came out of that machine were horrific! 
Darn, and there's no support group for that yet (although there are plenty of members here who are just as guilty - LOL!).
Were you making MMF? That's usually how they die around here.
If you find you don't really want to go hobart, you can also consider the 7 qt viking stand mixer with the 1000watt motor. Idon't personally have one, but everyone on here who I have seen write about it loves theirs. It will be my next countertop mixer.
On the other hand, I love my 20 qt hobart.
Theresa 
The local vocational high school was remodeling their pastry kitchen, and auctioned off some of their equipment. I got my 20 qt for about $250. I could have had a pair of full-sized stacking convection ovens for $25 each (yes, only 25 bucks!), but at that time, I was living in an apartment and had no place to store them.
Theresa
Oh, and the 20 quarts, bought brand new, run anywhere from $1800 to $2500, depending on the brand you buy and from whom you buy it.
Theresa
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